Perfect borders made easy

If you're planning a wedding on a tight budget, or you just love the idea of hand making as much of it yourself as possible, making your own invitations is a good place to start.

To create these invitations, I began with a package of cards and envelopes made of kraft cardstock. These were in a package of 50 and I got them on sale for 50% off (a sale like this is common at the big chain craft stores) so I paid $5. Quite a good deal at 10 cents each, including an envelope! Letterpressing and die cutting with the Fiskars Fuse and adding a little bit of layering of other inexpensive materials left me with a unique wedding invitation that fit with the shabby, rustic theme I was aiming for.

The base of my invitation was created using a small piece of patterned paper overlaid by a piece of star patterned vellum. To keep the cost even lower, bulk packages of vellum can be purchased and stamped with a small star stamp and silver stamping ink. I finished the base layering with a strip of burlap. Each layer was adhered using a spray on adhesive to allow for an invisible bond.

Purchasing a stamp set with a wedding or love theme can go a long way in tying the different decorative elements of a handmade wedding together. For this invitation, I used one of the sentiment stamps from the Fiskars Just Married Clear Stamp set. I stamped it onto vellum, punched it out with a large circle lever punch, and adhered it to a letterpressed and die cut circle using spray adhesive. After adding a "You're Invited" stamped ribbon banner and a punched heart, the front of my invitation was complete. All of the personal details can be included on the inside of the invitation or some of them, such as your names, can easily be incorporated on the front. Inserts such as RSVP cards and maps to the wedding venue can also be included inside the invitation.

My handmade wedding invitations were complete with the addition of a stamped image, again using the Just Married stamp set, and a punched heart to the envelope.